Our Teachers

It is a privilege and an honour to be able to guide and share the knowledge and love of yoga. The yoga journey is never-ending, and so Julie continually strives to study and refine her practice for herself and for the benefit of all. Most recently, Julie completed a Yoga for Seniors Teacher Training program, because she believes that yoga is accessible and beneficial for everyone.

Dave Collangelo has developed a program that stresses the importance of regular exercise, muscle building and nutrition. His approach includes the most effective ways to achieve a physically fit body, a healthy mindset, and self confidence. He has been privileged to work with several well-known celebrities including Valerie Pringle, Michael Lansberg, Leslie Jones, and Camilla Scott.

Alicia Delacroix has been an avid practitioner of the Asthanga Vinyasa system in the tradition of Sri. K. Patthabhi Jois for many years. She has been a teacher for several of those years having completed her initial teacher training in San Francisco, California. Alicia speaks and lectures on yoga asana, vinyasa and prana teachings at local communities and international colleges and universities.

Adina’s father, Viktor Fehr, planted the seeds of her yoga education in early childhood. At the age of 7, she experienced the teachings of yoga posture, breath work, meditation and philosophy through the work of Paramahansa Yogananda, and Swami Sivananda Rahda.Adina continued her journey in 2006 and completed her 200 hour Hatha Vinyasa Yoga Teacher Training in 2009. Adina believes in creating a safe space for the body to naturally unfold and move with the magic of the breath. Using a combination of meditation, breath work and asana in her classes, she allows each individual’s inner essence to shine through. Her classes inspire wellness; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

David has studied a variety of styles of yoga since 1980. His enthusiasm for yoga led him to the Kripalu Centre in Lenox, Massachusetts in 1994 where he became a certified Kripalu teacher. Soon after he became interested in Ashtanga Yoga, started practicing it, and received Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training at Downward Dog Yoga Centre in Toronto in 1999.Dave is known for his soothing, meditative voice and a teaching style that is focused and concise. In the last 12 years he has taught hundreds of classes in yoga studios and health clubs, and has also worked specifically with cancer patients. Since 2000 he has taught yoga in Europe with Travel With A Twist Tours. He currently teaches Ashtanga and Hatha Yoga, encouraging students to work at their own pace and discover what this ancient discipline has to offer.

In pursuit of a deeper understanding of the mind-body connection and an interest in complimentary therapies, Rosalia Delfino completed her diploma in acupuncture and is currently working towards her doctoral in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Teaching Yin Yoga allows her to blend the two things she loves (yoga and TCM) and share it with everybody.

Maria began practicing yoga in the year 2000, a momentous year to begin something that would change her life. She began with lunch-time classes as an escape from corporate life. The "addiction" to yoga happened almost immediately and in 2003 she decided to change her corporate career and become a yoga teacher.Graduating in early 2004 from The Yoga Sanctuary's teacher training program, Maria began teaching right away.Maria has studied with teachers Cynthia Funk, Jonathan Austman, Hart Lazer, and most recently, Felicia Pavlovic. Janet feels blessed to be involved in such a supportive environment. Yoga has brought her a new level of self-confidence and awareness, as well as the physical benefits of strength, endurance, focus and stability.

Karen has dedicated her life to both the practice and teaching of yoga. She combines an advanced understanding of anatomy and sequencing with a deep compassion for her students. Her classes are designed with precision and attention to detail, but her immense love of yoga creates an environment that is fun and welcoming.Karen completed her first yoga teacher training at The Yoga Sanctuary and has gone on to complete other teacher trainings, including, with Hart Lazer. She has been assisting The Yoga Sanctuary's Director, Cynthia Funk, with the studio's teacher training program for since 2008 and is a part of the faculty for the Advanced Yoga Teacher Training program.

Kareb has been practicing yoga for over 10 years and received her Hatha Vinyasa certification from The Yoga Sanctuary's teacher training program.She is an enthusiastic student of Ashtanga yoga and dedicated to the traditional Ashtanga style. A practioner of the second series, Jovita practices daily under the guidence of her teacher David Robson.In her classes she encourages others to find their inner strength and balance in a graceful way. She encourages students to challenge themselves physically, while at the same time, finding ease and stillness in the mind.

Yoga provides me with a framework to continue to study and increase my understanding of the intelligence behind the science of the human form, and how when we align it according to the laws of nature, we create more beauty both inside and out. I started teaching yoga in 2000, after taking my first Yoga teacher training. In following years I experimented with various yoga styles, until I happily found Anusara Yoga. My greatest joy in teaching is seeing a student discover that how through yoga we can unlock the key to a door that reveals a healthy mind, an energetic body and a warm, open heart.

I am a passionate Social Worker with the intention to spread the gift of yoga to cultivate healthy communities. My conviction to create supportive environments that foster change is the foundation for my yoga teaching. This is inspired by my own yoga practice and teacher trainings in Ashtanga Vinyasa and Anusara.

I am a strong fiercely independent woman with fire in her belly that lives to travel and enjoys moving through the world savoring new delights on each adventure. In 2006 I found my home at City Yoga and embarked on a training with Noah Maze and Anthony Benenati. It was during my apprenticeship with Anthony that I discovered my real interest was the power of touch and the healing aspects of yoga. Since that time I have trained extensively with Judith Hanson Lasater in both Restorative Yoga and Yoga Therapy and have studied Thai Yoga Massage with Saul David Raye. I am a certified Restorative Yoga teacher. I feel crazy blessed every day to have found something that lights me up from within and makes me all shiny and bright. I love to teach, to travel, to write and to play. My philosophy is simple: life is meant to be savored. I say savor away…

I first discovered yoga during my theatre training at Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. At the time, I don’t think I even realized that I was doing yoga, but gradually became more and more aware of the connection between the mind, the body, the breath and eventually the Self. After moving to Chicago in 2003, I began practicing Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga with a wonderful teacher and soon became enthralled with the process of Yoga. In my classes, I tend to focus on breath as an avenue to the deeper layers of being and the fact that yoga is a process of transformation, reminding students frequently that in order to transform, we must first come to realize that we are beginning from somewhere. I strive for a fun and relaxed atmosphere while inspiring a passionate approach to this ancient and sacred art.

I began practicing yoga in my hometown of New York City when a friend invited me to a class at Alan Finger’s studio “Be Yoga” in 2000. There and then, I began a dedicated practice of ISHTA yoga. I was an eager and avid student and my passion for the practice of yoga developed quickly. A 2004 relocation to the West Coast brought the Anusara practice into my life. Since then, I have studied with a number of world-renowned teachers of Anusara Yoga including its founder, John Friend, and other established teachers including Desiree Rumbaugh, Ross Rayburn, Tiffany Fraser and Douglass Brooks among others. I found my first Anusara home at Yoga Inside Out, where I practiced and taught until the merger with Bala Yoga. Since the close of both those studios, I have had the opportunity to teach at the some of the best studios in town including Liberation Yoga, Black Dog Yoga, Center For Yoga-Yogaworks, Exhale, Mission Street Yoga and now Urth Yoga. I am a caring teacher with an inspiring energy that is matched only by my infectiously playful spirit. I look forward to seeing you in class.

Mackie is filled with gratitude for this wonderful practice and to her many teachers and friends, especially Chloë Chung Misner, Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, Gil Hedley, Tiffany Fraser, Noah Maze, and Darren Rhodes. For her Yoga is so much more than just an exercise, it is a profound spiritual journey. She is a “somanaut”, a dedicated explorer of inner space, investigating the experience of human embodiment. Mackie is excited and passionate about yoga and strives to make her classes practical and accessible to anyone looking to create transformation in their lives, whether their desire is to open their minds and hearts or their hamstrings… She believes that the end result of either intention brings us closer to achieving both. She lives in Laurel Canyon with her husband and their furry friends.